


A bump in the road

by Simbanrat



Series: Not everything is as it seems [3]
Category: EastEnders (TV)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Minor Violence, Past Domestic Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2020-07-10
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:27:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25106194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Simbanrat/pseuds/Simbanrat
Summary: 6 months after Ben and Callum get together it isn't all rainbows and happiness for them.Continuing on with their relationship after they officially get together following Ben's split from his violent ex. Phil's a dick in this part. You really need to read the other parts first to understand the past and what's going on with these guys.
Relationships: Callum "Halfway" Highway/Ben Mitchell
Series: Not everything is as it seems [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1781023
Comments: 19
Kudos: 75





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I couldn't leave these versions alone, I had an idea of what could happen a little bit down the line and went with it. Only 5 chapters so not a long one.
> 
> I don't own any of these characters and appreciate all kudos and feedback. Thanks for reading.

When Callum met Ben all those months ago, he never thought that his life would turn out like this. From the first time he met him he’d felt a spark, but since Ben already had a boyfriend it wasn’t something Callum expected would ever happen, even though he was over the moon it had.

Helping Ben through the Michael situation wasn’t something he planned, but when he discovered he was hurting him it caused his own heart physical pain. After he found Ben, bloody and beaten in that bathroom it took everything he had to not throw up, the thought of somebody being able to do that to another person, a person they claimed they loved made him sick to his stomach. 

He never planned on things to develop into a relationship, yes he fancied Ben, who wouldn’t, but he knew that that wasn’t what the other man needed at that moment. He needed friendship and support, somebody to be there for him and to not cause him more pain. Callum wanted to be that with his whole heart, he never dreamed that he would fall in love with him and he never thought in million years that Ben would feel the same. 

When they declared their love for each other, on a warm spring night outside the Vic it felt like they were in a movie, an epic love story with a happy ending sure to follow. Yes there’s been good times but it isn’t always hearts and flowers with them. In the 8 months they’ve been together it’s mostly been happy, but it isn’t always, the bad times are bad, both men feeling hurt and confused over what was going wrong. 

Although they never actually discussed moving in together, 6 months after they officially started to date it became obvious they were living together. Callum never pushed the subject and always kept paying the rent on his place, wanting Ben to feel as though he was in control of things and not wanting him to feel overwhelmed by imposing himself at Ben’s flat full time. But one night while they were laying curled up in bed together Ben mentioned how silly it seemed that Callum was paying for a flat he didn’t ever stay in anymore. 

Ben suggested that Callum give up the lease to his place and bring the rest of his things over. The older man didn’t really need to mention that at that point he barely had anything left at his place anyway, most of his stuff had made it over to Ben’s flat already. His clothes filled up Ben’s drawers, his suits hung up in the wardrobe and his toiletries took up more space in the bathroom cabinet than Ben’s did. When it was time for Callum to officially move in he turned up with a small box with a couple of random photos and a few bits he picked up at the laundrette. They both knew it was symbolic and Callum could probably have left the contents back at the flat without missing them but it made it feel like it was a big deal. 

All of Ben’s family loved Callum, sometimes Ben wondered if they liked him better than him in truth. Callum was everything he wasn’t and Ben couldn’t believe he had this wonderful man in his life, after everything he didn’t truly believed he deserved somebody whose soul was pure goodness and who brought joy to everyone he met. Ben couldn’t shake the feeling that it was destined to end in disaster, that one day Callum would realise that he was rotten to the core, it wasn’t just Michael that had tainted his soul, it had felt irreparably damaged for a long time. 

It wasn’t long after Ben made the break from Michael, after that awful day in the flat where Ben was pinned to the floor, helpless and terrified that he couldn’t move with the pain shooting up his arm and the fist smashing into his face that Ben started to see a professional to help him work through his feelings. The nurses at the hospital after that final attack had given him a card with the number of a domestic abuse helpline on it, assuming wrongly that Callum was the culprit and discreetly trying to help him to leave him and offering to call the police. 

Ben had to tell them it wasn’t Callum who did this to him but he wasn’t sure if they believed him, the way he would catch them looking at Callum when he came to visit him sometimes filled him with shame. Knowing that the hospital staff thought so badly of this man who had done nothing but help him made him feel guilty, something else he was ruining and making a mess of. They had also given him the number of a counsellor to talk to, somebody who specialised in victims of violence and it ultimately saved his life. It did a lot to help heal some of his mental state but it couldn’t heal it all. There was a piece of Ben that always felt like it was going to be damaged and broken, no matter how much love Callum showed him or his counsellor tried to tell him otherwise. 

Things weren’t always easy between Ben and Callum, most of the time it was great. They spent evenings in curled up on the sofa together, Callum sitting up with Ben laying on him, leaning into the touch of his boyfriend absently stroking his hair as they watched some crap tv show about fuck knows what. They bickered now and then, Ben was insecure and was worried Callum was going to come to his senses and realise he wasn’t worth the effort. It felt like sometimes he would push the other man as hard as he could, daring him to leave him and prove him right and that he wasn’t good enough. Callum never let him win though, not raising to the bait and continued to tell his boyfriend that he loved him and would he please believe that. 

Ben found it hard to be loved. It felt like he’d spent his whole life not knowing what it felt like, a life full of pain and fear with nobody there to offer him the love and comfort that most people have. Now he had it with Callum, he found it impossible to believe, this man who seemingly loved him unconditionally and would never hurt him, Ben started to wonder what could be wrong with him if he could be in love a toxic man like him. His soul still bared the scars from his past even though the physical ones have healed. 

They didn’t argue much, it was mainly about Ben’s dad if they did. Callum didn’t have much to do with Phil and nor did he want to really. Ben and his family had told him snippets about the man, the way he would hit Ben when he was kid, the evil stepmother and the dodgy dealing and run ins with the law. If Callum had his way he would keep Ben far away from his dad, wanting to protect him the best he could from the possibility of putting himself in harms way. 

Callum got wind that there was something dodgy going on at the Arches, he didn’t know what exactly, just a hushed argument between Jay and Ben one day while he was sitting in the bedroom and they were in the living room. He tried to not listen in, knowing that it was really none of his business, but he was worried about his boyfriend, not wanting him to get into trouble with the law again, not being able to stand the thought of losing him to prison. 

When Jay left he came out of where he’d stayed during Jay’s visit to find Ben pacing the room, chewing on his thumbnail with a nervousness that Callum hadn’t seen in a while. He knew then that whatever was going down with his dad was something that Ben needed to get out of and avoid. Ben hadn’t noticed Callum had entered the room, his mind was elsewhere and he jumped slightly when the sound of his name cut through his thoughts. 

“Ben”, Callum was stood on his left and reached his arm to put gently put his hand on his upper arm, the affectionate touch grounding him and bringing him back from where his mind was headed. He looked at Callum, blinking his eyes and knowing he was back in the room, safe with the man who loves him. He smiled and reassured his boyfriend that he was ok and there was nothing to worry about. Callum knew he was lying, there was something going on but he didn’t want to push the matter. Instead he drew the smaller man to him and wrapped his arms around him, hugging him close before bringing a hand up to caress the back of his head, kissing the top of his hair as Ben’s face settled into his neck, the position that he finds the most comforting.

They stood like that for a while, Ben allowing himself to be held and comforted by the bigger man, needing the contact to remind him of what he has. His boyfriend knew him so well, reading Ben’s mood easily and knowing exactly what he needed to do to try and bring him back to him. Eventually they parted and Callum held onto Ben’s shoulders as he pulled him back to look in his face, trying to read the emotion he saw there. He could see he was scared, worried and tense. 

Callum swore under his breath about Phil, wondering why the man had such a hold over his son, he didn’t deserve the loyalty and love that Ben gave him and he wished he could see how much better off he would be if he could cut his dad out of his life for good. But he knew it was a losing battle, the only real arguments they had was over the elder Mitchell man and Callum resented the man he had only spoken a dozen words to in all the time he had known Ben. Phil still had no interest in Ben’s partner and in return Callum had no interest in getting to know him either. He had his own homophobic bully father, he didn’t need another.

Ben was looking at Callum with a look of defeat on his face, although his eyes were glistening slightly with the tears that were threatening to escape, they were dull and distracted and were looking slightly over his shoulder, refusing to really look Callum in the eye. As much as he wanted to ask his boyfriend what was going on, he knew from past experience that if he tried to push the matter it was going to end in an argument and wasn’t going to resolve anything. Ben would get defensive and he would get agitated. Phil wasn’t worth them falling out over, Callum loved Ben too much to let him get in their way. Instead he put his hand on Ben’s cheek and brushed it gently and moved in to give him a kiss on his forehead, closing his eyes as his lips touched the skin, holding them over the small scar that was barely visible from Ben’s last meeting with Michael. 

Ben felt the tension draining out of his body the longer he was in the other man’s presence, Callum always knew what to do and say to help calm him down. The counsellor had told him in his early sessions that he needed to share with his partner the tricks that would work to help him relax and he was really good at carrying them out, naturally wanting to hug, kiss and touch Ben anyway. 

As Callum pulled back, Ben could see the questions in his eyes, he knew that he knew something was happening but he hoped that he wouldn’t have to tell him. He didn’t think he could take the look of disappointment if he were to find out that Ben was going to be running some illegal motors through the business. Jay had been over to tell him that Phil was having cars delivered to the Arches and he needed to get the registration plates and identification switched over before they were to sold on at the car lot. Ben didn’t want to do it but he had no choice in the matter, ultimately Phil was in charge and there was no standing up to him. Ben just hoped he could keep Callum in the dark, not wanting him to know something else about his life that would make him ashamed to call him his boyfriend. 

Eventually Callum talked himself out of pushing the subject, not wanting to pile on the pressure when Ben was already looking stressed. He wanted to be the calming force of his life, not someone who made things worse. They agreed to get a Chinese for their dinner and settled down on the sofa together to wait for it be delivered. Callum sat on one end and Ben laid with his head leaning on his thigh, closing his eyes and falling asleep as Callum stroked his hair. 


	2. Chapter 2

Callum tried to not get involved with what was going on with Ben and his dad, but over the next couple of days he was acting shifty at home and was starting to get a bit withdrawn. It was the first time he hadn’t confided in Callum about what was wrong since they got together and was starting to get worried. He didn’t want his boyfriend to get into something that he couldn’t get out of. He decided it might be best to talk to Ben’s mum, she knew more of his history with his dad than he did, maybe she had some ideas about how to deal with the situation and how to get Ben away from his dad. 

While Ben went to work in the morning Callum popped over to Kathy’s. She had a huge smile on her face as she opened the door, pleased to see the young man who was making her son so happy. She told him to go sit down and she’d put the kettle on, she pottered around the kitchen while Callum sat nervously waiting for her to join him and sit down, picking at the skin around his fingernails and making it a bit sore. Eventually she came in, carrying a tray with a pot of tea, a jug of milk, two cups and a plate of biscuits, setting them down on the table before sitting down in the chair next to him. 

As she sat down she smiled at him and picked up the tea pot, playing mum and pouring them both out a cup, adding milk and then apologising for forgetting the sugar. She went to get up hurriedly but Callum shot his arm out to stop her, asking her to sit back down because he needed to talk to her about Ben. She had a worried look come across her face at Callum’s tone, he was clearly upset about something and she was terrified that something was wrong with their relationship, Ben had already been through so much and she just wanted him to be happy and settled. 

“I’m worried about Ben, he’s up to something with Phil and I don’t know what it is”

Kathy’s face dropped and she was immediately as worried as Callum was, it didn’t reassure him at all, he was hoping she would set his mind at ease and tell him there was nothing to worry about. Apparently though he was right to worry. Kathy knew enough of Phil’s criminal activities that she knew to worry about her son being dragged into it all.

“Do you know what’s happening?”

“Not everything, but Jay came round and they were arguing about something, Ben is acting strange as hell and he’s not confiding in me like he usually does. I’m worried about how this is effecting him, since Michael he’s so easily spooked….”

Callum realised he had wandered into a topic he hadn’t meant to when Kathy got a look on her face at the mention of Ben’s ex. Even now, so many months later, Ben didn’t like to talk about it with his family. He didn’t like to talk about it with Callum either but he had already seen him at his most vulnerable when he helped him after the final beating, he felt less conscious and ashamed with Callum knowing more details. He still refused to discuss it with his family though, even though they wanted to talk to him about it. This was the first time Callum had mentioned the man’s name in a long time, generally he was very good at not thinking about him or bringing him up. He shook his head to himself about the off limits talk and tried to get back to the matter at hand. 

“I just don’t want him to get involved in something that’s going to get him hurt or in trouble”

“Have you tried talking to Jay about it?”

Callum shook his head, “No, I get the impression Jay is forcing the matter on Phil’s behalf, I don’t want it to get back to him that I’m asking around so I don’t drop Ben in it”

“Phil has always had his dodgy deals, always had something a little illegal happening in the background to his honest businesses. I know in the past he has tried to get Ben involved but he’s always resisted it, I don’t know why he would agree now”

“The way he was acting Kathy, I don’t think he has a choice in the matter, I’ve not seen him like this since…” 

Callum stopped himself from saying the name again. Kathy seemed to ponder the situation for a while before she said she would try and find out what was happening. Her and Phil weren’t on particularly good terms but where her son was concerned she was determined to try and help, especially since she let him down so badly before. Callum was relieved that Kathy was going to see what she could do, a problem shared and all that… They drank their tea and carried on chatting until it was time for him to get to work, he headed off and she gave him a hug at the door, happy that her son was dating somebody who cared so much about him, he deserved some happiness, and then her thoughts turned to whatever the hell her ex was trying to drag him into. 

In the end Kathy tried to talk to Jay first, it was the right choice as he gave up the information without too much effort. He expressed regret that he was involved in the whole plan too. He didn’t want to do it anymore than Ben did, but because he owed Phil for taking him in when he was a kid he felt like he couldn’t say no. Now she knew what was going on she decided the best course of action was to go and see Phil and see if she couldn’t talk him out of dragging Ben down with him. If they got caught Ben could end up in prison and she wasn’t willing to let that happen, especially when things were going so well for him now. She went over to his house and knocked on the door, Phil didn’t seem too pleased to see her but he invited her in anyway. 

That evening Callum got back to the flat and let himself in, Ben was in the kitchen stirring something on the hob. He shouted a hello as he entered but the other man stood with his back still turned to him, not moving except for a slight tensing up as he heard his voice and his hand going in a circular motion. Callum shrugged off his coat and hung it up before he moved over to Ben, placing his hands on his hips and leaning in to give him a kiss on the cheek. Ben didn’t react to the gesture, still standing and stirring what looked like a pasta sauce, ignoring Callum altogether. He scrunched his face up to himself, wondering what he’d done wrong and why Ben was acting like this. He’d never given him the silent treatment before. 

Callum still had his hands on Ben’s hips, he could feel the tension radiating off the other man and he was nervous to ask what was wrong, his head was hovering to the side of Ben’s face and he was staring ahead of him. He wasn’t even looking at what he was stirring and the sauce was beginning to go everywhere, Ben’s vigorous stirring was throwing the red liquid all over the hob and it was looking like a crime scene, red puddles of blood all over the white ceramic surface.

“Sweetheart what’s wrong?” Callum asked, Ben didn’t answer and carried on with what he was doing, messily stirring the pot and Callum thought to himself that there was going to be more sauce on the hob than left in the saucepan at this rate. The pot of pasta was starting to boil over as well but Ben hadn’t noticed, he was too lost in his own irate mood so Callum reached round him and turned the flame down on the pot, the water calming down and the slightly milky coloured froth receded from the lip of the saucepan. Ben continued to stir. 

Eventually Callum put his hand on Ben’s, stilling the motion of his hand on the wooden spoon and he finally let go of it, it falling to the side of the pot and leaving the sauce to settle. Still with his hand on Ben’s, he wrapped his other arm around the smaller man’s waist, drawing his body close to his own and rested his face against the side of Ben’s, breathing in deeply and slowly hoping that the other man would copy and the deep breaths would help him to relax and calm down. He was right in his decision as soon Ben seemed to relax into his embrace, his tense hand flattened out and he allowed Callum to bring his hand back to his body and wrapped it around him. Holding Ben firmly in a hug and the pair of them matching each other’s breathing. 

When things were calmer Callum placed a kiss on Ben’s temple and loosened his grip on the other man. He released his arms and put his hands on Ben’s shoulders to turn him around to look at him, hoping that face to face he would get out of him what was wrong and that Ben was ready to talk to him. He was shocked though when he turned to face him, Ben had a big bruise on his face, his eye was swollen and there was a small cut on his lip with blood splashed around it. Callum’s blood ran cold and Ben was looking anywhere but at him, the spot over his shoulder seemed more interesting to him in that moment than Callum’s face.

Callum reached his hand to Ben’s face and gently cupped his cheek, using his thumb to brush the skin, hoping that the gesture would help to reassure him. Soon Ben flicked his eyes to Callum’s face and he looked at him, a defiant gaze which made Callum a little nervous, not being able to read the mood of his boyfriend. Ben stood with his arms crossed, seemingly trying to comfort himself and to keep his anger in check by keeping his hands under control and he was tapping his foot on the ground through irritation. Callum swallowed and had no idea what was about to happen but he was worried, he’d never seen Ben so tightly wound up before. He removed his hand from his cheek.

“Ben who hit you?”

Ben looked at him, raising an eyebrow and squinting his eyes. He seemed to consider something for a moment and then he asked his own question, dodging the one he was being asked but answering it at the same time.

“What did you say to my dad?” 


	3. Chapter 3

They stood staring at each other for what seemed like an eternity, Ben staring Callum out, the bruise on his face seemingly getting darker before his eyes, the guilt of it being Ben’s dad making it look worse to Callum’s eyes. Eventually he couldn’t look Ben in the eye anymore and dropped his gaze to the ground, starting to chew on his bottom lip and knowing he had been busted for interfering. 

Ben shook his head when Callum looked away and turned on his heel and stormed away. Callum reacted too slow to stop him and by the time he’d reached out to try and keep him from walking away he was out of the room and slamming their bedroom door shut. The sound of the door banging carried through the whole flat and Callum flinched at the loud noise. He cursed himself, even if he hadn’t gone and spoken to Phil in person, he knew he’d set in motion the series of events by going to talk to Kathy.

He turned off the flames on the hob, not wanting the pots to dry out and knowing that they probably wouldn’t be eating the food this evening anyway. Standing in the kitchen he didn’t know what to do. Ben was so angry and upset, he wasn’t sure that going after him and pushing him right now was a good idea. He wanted to check out his face though, try to clean away the traces of blood and make sure he was a ok but he didn’t know how he would react to his presence at the moment. 

Eventually he knew he had to go speak to him, leaving him inside his own mind wasn’t a good idea when he was upset like this. The last time he’d had an injury to his face he’d had a panic attack looking at his reflection in the mirror, freaking out about the memories of his time with Michael and Callum didn’t want him to be alone, thinking about it and reliving the memories by himself. 

He tentatively walked over to the cold daunting door, remembering the time he was stood on the outside when Ben was beaten and bloody inside the en suite, hating standing on the wrong side of the door when Ben was hurting away from him. He tapped gently on the uninviting wood and called his name out, he didn’t answer, so he knocked again and told him he was coming in. 

When he opened the door he saw Ben laying on the bed, curled on one side in the foetal position and facing away from the door. He looked so small and wounded on the big bed, his body as close to the edge as he could get and making it blatantly obvious that he was in no mood to talk. Callum said his name again and he didn’t react so he went and sat on the edge of the bed, it dipped slightly under his weight but Ben didn’t move a muscle, his body so tense it stayed still like a statue. 

“Ben”

No answer, not even a hint of a reaction to him listening to him. So Callum tried again.

“Ben, are you ok? Your face? Does it hurt?”

Nothing. He contemplated laying down next to him, getting his body as close as he could and wrapping an arm around him. Holding him tight and nuzzling at his hair, but he knew better. He worried that if he tried then Ben would freak out, shove him off and go storming out of the flat. He’d rather he was angry at home than angry out in a pub or bar, not wanting him to get into trouble and knowing there was a chance he might go out spoiling for a fight given the provocation. 

Instead he stood back up and walked around to the other side of the bed, coming to stand in front of Ben and crouching down so he was level with his face. He was staring ahead, straight through Callum and he was silently crying. The bruise on his face seemed worse than it was in the kitchen and the lip had more blood than Callum thought. He wanted nothing more than to reach out and brush his face, comfort him and wipe the blood and pain away from him.

“Ben can I clean your face? Make sure you’re ok?”

He didn’t answer again, but his eyes flicked momentarily to Callum’s face, making eye contact for a fraction of a second and Callum felt the anger searing into his soul from the fleeting look. His guts twisted and he felt sick, feeling like he’d betrayed his lover and wondering if they would ever get past this. He regretted immediately getting involved in Phil’s business and wishes he’d just left it, now Ben was hurt and he’d lost his trust. 

Callum went to the bathroom and wetted down a flannel, looking at himself in the mirror above the sink and hating what was looking back at him, understanding that time that Ben punched the image of himself. He wanted to do that right now, angry that he’d ruined everything and thinking the man in the mirror was the biggest idiot he had ever seen. 

He went back to the bedroom and Ben was still in the same position, looking at the wall and ignoring the world around him. Callum began to wonder if he was purposely ignoring him or was he so lost inside his own head with his anger than he truly didn’t know he was there. He contemplated finding the number of Ben’s counsellor, wondering if she could talk him down but then Ben sat up and dangled his legs over the side of the bed, sitting bolt upright before he looked to where Callum was standing holding the damp cloth.

They made eye contact and Callum understood that Ben was giving him permission to check out his face, so he approached him gently and crouched back down in front of him again. He bit on his bottom lip as he dabbed the cold material to the side of Ben’s face where his eye was slightly swollen. Ben closed his eyes at the cool touch as it relieved the heat in his face and leaned ever so slightly into his boyfriend’s touch before he caught what he was doing and opened his eyes, sitting up straight again and his eyes settling back on the wall. 

Callum then wiped around the cut on Ben’s lip, relieved that as he cleaned the blood away the cut wasn’t too bad, there was a small bruise encasing it though. After checking Ben over he was reassured that there wasn’t any permanent damage and he took the chance to cup Ben’s face again. As soon as he touched the skin though Ben stood up, Callum was off balance as he brushed past and he ended up on his bum on the floor as Ben walked out of the room. 

He sat there as he heard the front door open and close as Ben left the flat. He wanted nothing more than to chase after him and stop him from storming off, but he couldn’t get his body to move. He leaned up against the chest of drawers behind him and brought his knees up to his chest before he lowered his chin to rest on top of them. He couldn’t stop the tears from escaping as he wondered if he had fucked up the best thing that has ever happened to him for good. 

He sat like that for what felt like forever, the room getting darker and darker in the absence of any lights being switched on, Ben still hadn’t come back and he was missing him already even though barely an hour had passed. The flat seemed cold and empty without the other man, his singing of show tunes and endless cheeky innuendos filled all the rooms without even trying and Callum hated when he wasn’t there. 

Callum heard his ring tone singing out and he rushed to stand up, his legs had gone dead while he was sat on the ground and his bum had gone numb. He stumbled as he stood and rushed awkwardly to where the song was coming from. He’d left his mobile in his coat pocket and he raced to grab at it before it stopped from ringing. He got to his coat and reached into the pocket just as the phone went silent. He swore to himself and took it out, looking at the display to see who had called him and wishing it was Ben. It wasn’t, Lola’s name was listed under missed calls and he pressed on the phone next to her name to call her back, wondering if she had heard from Ben. 

“Hello?”

“What did you do Callum?”

“Have you seen Ben?”

“Yeah, pops called me, he’s drinking the club dry, you better go get him”

“I’m on my way”

Callum cancelled the call before Lola could ask him anymore question, not wanting to get into what he’d done over the phone, or at all really. He grabbed the coat from where it was hanging on the hook in the hallway and he raced out of the door to head over to the club, hoping to reach Ben before he got into any trouble. 

He got to the club and the guy on door was going to stop him from going in, but when he said he was there to collect Ben he stepped aside and let him past. That couldn’t be a good sign and Callum wondered how Ben could have drank so much in just over an hour and how bad a state he could be in. His question was answered as he walked down the stairs and opened the door to enter the bar area, Ben was pretty much passed out asleep on the bar, sitting on a stool and slumped over. Callum was relieved he wasn’t fighting anyone and was just sleeping instead. 

Callum walked over to where Ben was sleeping, Billy was standing behind the bar with an annoyed look on his face, annoyed at who Callum didn’t know but he nodded his head in greeting to the older man as he came up level to Ben’s sleeping form. He put his hand on Ben’s shoulder gently, hoping that he didn’t spook the other man from his slumber. He shook his body slightly and Ben moved his head, repositioning himself on the bar. Callum shook him a little harder and said his name firmly, Ben responded by opening his eyes and looking blearily back at him.

He blinked a few times and sat up straight, wincing at the pain in his back from being slumped over. He looked at his boyfriend confused, at Billy and then back at Callum before he jumped down from his seat and stumbled slightly towards the door. Callum could only trail after him and make sure he didn’t sway too much and bump into anything on his way or stumble walking up the stairs to the exit.

The walk back to the flat was in silence, the smaller man walking ahead with Callum walking behind. When they got to the flat Ben realised he’d forgotten his keys so he stood to one side to let the other man in to unlock the door. Once he did he pushed past and walked straight back to the bedroom, slamming the door shut once again before Callum could even get inside the flat and shut the door. 

He came in and closed the door, locking it behind him and took his coat off, hanging it back where it was located just ten minutes before. Deciding on trying to talk to Ben one last time he headed to the bedroom, not stopping to knock this time but opening it and walking straight in. Ben had turned the light on and was standing a few steps from the door, he was facing away from where Callum was stood and was swaying ever so slightly with the alcohol he had consumed. 

“Ben I’m sorry that I interfered with your dad”

“You had no right”

“I was worried about you”

“It’s none of you business”

“I love you Ben, of course it’s my business, I care about anything that might hurt you”

Ben spun around then to look directly at Callum, an incredulous look on his face and one of his eyebrows was raised impossibly high in confusion. He raised his voice and shouted at his boyfriend as he pointed at his face.

“That worked out real well Callum”

“I didn’t know he would hit you Ben” Callum shouted back, his fists clenching in anger and frustration at the situation and he took a step towards Ben, intending to reach out and touch his arm, trying to make contact and ground him like he usually does but Ben misread his intention in his drunken haze. As he stepped closer, Ben’s eyes widened in fear and he took a step back, when Callum raised his arm to reach out for him Ben flinched and cowered away from him stumbling back and raising his arms up to shield his face. Callum froze to the spot and looked at his boyfriend, he looked terrified and he turned his head to look at his own arm reaching out and the clenched fist at the end of it. He felt sick to his stomach and as he took a step back from Ben he moved his hands into an open gesture, trying to show that he was no threat. 

“Ben I’m sorry” he said shakily, wanting to do nothing else but reach out and hug his boyfriend to comfort him but Ben stood back up straight and raced into the en suite, slamming and locking the door shut behind him. Callum looked at the barricaded door, slumped down onto the bed and put his head in his hands, devastated that he saw fear on Ben’s face and close to tears at the thought that he could ever think he would hurt him. 


	4. Chapter 4

It was all such a mess. Callum was sitting on the bed and Ben was hiding in the bathroom. He didn’t want to go banging on the door and making the situation worse so he continued to sit there, not knowing what to do for the best. His boyfriend was scared of him and it broke his heart.

Ben made no move to come out and eventually Callum thought the best thing to do was to leave. Ben was scared, upset and drunk, there would be no reasoning or understanding tonight, it was best to let him sleep it off and try to talk in the morning when they both had a clearer head, let the dust settle and for things to calm down, even though the last thing he wanted to do was to leave Ben alone, he just wanted to comfort him and make sure he was OK. 

Callum grabbed a bag from the wardrobe and chucked a few things in it, just enough so he would have clean clothes and underwear for the morning, not intending to be gone for any longer than necessary. He couldn’t get his toothbrush though as it was in the en suite so he went to the main bathroom to grab one of the spares they had and shoved it in his bag too before placing it on the sofa in the living room.

He went back to the bedroom and walked over the shut door, he tapped on it softly and leaned his head up on it as he put his open palm flush against it, wishing he was touching Ben and not the barrier between them. 

“Ben, I think we need some time. I’m going to go stay at a friend’s house tonight, give you some space. I love you Ben, I would never hurt you, I hope you believe that. I have my phone. Call me. Please sweetheart, I love you so much”. 

Callum couldn’t stop the tears as he finished talking to the unresponsive door, stroking it with his hand as he pushed himself away and walked towards the bedroom door. When he reached it he stopped and turned around to see if Ben was going to come out and stop him, but he didn’t. So he picked up his bag off the sofa and walked to the front door, picking up and putting on his coat. He looked around one last time and let himself out, quietly shutting the door behind him.

Ben was inside the en suite, sitting rocking on the toilet, in the same position and state that Callum had found him in on that awful day. He had heard his boyfriend talking to him through the door and wanted to respond but his body wouldn’t react. He knew Callum would never hurt him, of course he knew, but when he saw how angry Callum was, and when he stepped towards him all he could see was Michael, raising his hand to him and a fist swinging towards his face. 

He also saw his dad, his face red with rage and shouting at him. He was a little boy again with a big towering bully standing over him, hitting him and telling him he was worthless. He believed that for so long, only truly believing he was worthy of love when he met the tall man with the blue eyes in the E20. 

When Callum said he was going to go he wanted to jump up and race to the door but his legs wouldn’t respond. His body was shaking in fear and adrenaline and he was glued to the spot, helpless to shout out and tell his boyfriend not to go, that he knew he wouldn’t hurt him and that he just needed some time. Nothing came out though and he was powerless as he heard retreating steps and the front door shut softly. 

Ben cried as he was left alone in the flat, just his own mind to keep him company which was not a good idea the mood he was in. He sat for ages on the loo, letting his body calm down and eventually he was able to stand. Wobbly legs carrying him unsteadily to the sink to look at his face in the mirror. He looked a mess, he looked like he did when he was with Michael. 

Why would Callum ever love him looking like this he thought to himself. His eye was dark and swollen, it was slightly bloodshot and his lip looked a little swollen too with a small cut. He hated looking like this, so many memories of looking at his broken face in the mirror came flooding back to him, so many times he had a black eye or bloody nose. The memories were too much for him and he felt his fist clenching, but he took a few deep breaths and uncurled his hand, grabbing hold of the basin and looking at himself again before pushing away from the mirror. 

He stumbled to the door and unlocked it, opening it slowly and peering outside, secretly hoping that Callum was still there and hadn’t really gone. But the room was empty, the flat quiet and lonely. Ben felt guilty that Callum had ran away, where would he have gone? Ben didn’t know many of his friends and didn’t know which of them he would go to in an emergency. He hoped that wherever he ended up he was safe. 

He could call him and ask him to come home, but he wasn’t in the right frame of mind. His mind was showing him a constant stream of all the times he’d been scared and beaten, like a home movie playing and mocking him. As he saw Stella, his step mum come into view he placed his hand on his chest over his heart, the small scars there itched slightly at the memory of cruel fingernails digging into his flesh. 

He remembered his dad’s anger when he copied what Stella did to him to his sister, burning her like he was burnt, how he reacted towards him and how he wished that Phil had been as caring and angry about the violence he had suffered at the hands of his girlfriend as the one ill judged time he had hurt his sister in response, not knowing any different that that wasn’t how people treated each other. He took many a beating from Phil over the years but none of them hurt more than that time. 

The boys in prison targeted him constantly, he was weaker than them and he stood no chance, the beatings were almost daily and he wondered to himself if that was when he just stopped caring, he could see them now, seemingly lined up and ready to take their turn to hit the weak gay kid. He felt tears in his eyes as he wondered why everyone thought that he deserved to be treated like that.

Everyone except Callum. Pure sweet Callum who did nothing but love and support him. He saved his life by getting him away from Michael. Ben honestly believed that if he’d stayed with his ex then he would have ended up dead. The beatings were gradually getting more regular and harder, that last time he was scared for his life and thought that if someone hadn’t knocked on the door, he might have beaten him to death. 

But Callum had inadvertently led to this latest beating from Phil. His dad had called him over to his house, inviting him in and letting him sit down in the living room, even going so far as to offering him a cup of tea and making him feel relaxed before he started questioning him. Ben felt his stomach drop as he realised that someone had been talking to Phil, trying to get him to not involve Ben in his plan. He could see how angry he was getting from the colour of his face, getting redder by the minute. 

Eventually he exploded, asking why anyone else knew about the plans they made, accusing Ben of shouting his mouth off to someone. Ben tried to talk but Phil interrupted him and shouted in his face. He was still sat on the sofa and he tried to stand up to raise his height up to match that of his father but Phil put his hand out and stopped him, continuing to shout about betraying him and their family, but then he brought up something Ben never wanted him to know about…

“And what’s that about that ex of yours hitting you, you’re an embarrassment”

Phil leaning over him, shouting at him, hitting Ben where it hurt emotionally and reminding him of something he was so desperate to forget. How did his dad know, who told him. He felt sick knowing that Phil knew how weak he was, the disappointment in his dad’s eyes growing by the second knowing that his weak gay son was unable to defend himself. He tried not to cry, his eyes prickled and he determinedly blinked to try and keep the tears at bay but it seemed to make Phil more angry seeing Ben’s eyes glistening. 

“Fucking waste of space poofter”

He shouted as he swung his fist into Ben’s face. The pain exploded in his eye as the fist connected with his eye and his body was pushed back against the back of the sofa. Phil threw another punch and Ben was in too much shock to respond in any other way than to bring his hand to his face, touching his lip and bringing it away to see blood there. He looked up at his dad who seemed satisfied by his work and had stepped away from his son. 

“Get out of here, you ain’t a Mitchell, you ain’t no son of mine”

Ben stood up unsteadily, rushed past his dad and escaped the house, keeping his head down as he walked, heading back to the safety of his flat and hoping that Callum would be there when he got home. He went in but the place was empty. He sat on the sofa for half an hour while he thought things through in his mind, trying to work out how Phil knew what he knew, who would tell him about Michael and who knew about the dodgy deal he had going on. 

Ben’s blood ran cold when he remembered Callum had seen him arguing with Jay. He must have put two and two together and gone to see Phil. His heart broke as he thought of his Callum going behind his back, going to his dad and telling him the most painful secret he had. He didn’t know what to do with himself so he started cooking dinner in a haze, working on autopilot until his boyfriend got home. 

Now here he was, sitting in the flat alone. Beaten, bruised and feeling betrayed. He missed his boyfriend already but he couldn’t ring him. Too much had happened and he needed to think if this was something they could get past. He was on the sofa so he picked up the tv remote, turning on the tele and flicking absentmindedly through the channels, trying to find something to put on so he didn’t have to hear the sound of loneliness. He settled on the music channel who were repeating their run down of the best musical songs, the same programme that was on the first night he spent at Callum’s flat after being released from the hospital. He laid down on the sofa and closed his eyes, letting the songs playing in the background remind him of the past. 

Callum ended up catching the tube and heading to a friend he had from work, he was surprised when he turned up on his doorstep but when the saw how upset he was he invited him in and got him a blanket and pillow so he could kip on the sofa. As he and his girlfriend went to bed and left him to it he sat staring into space. Replaying the evening’s events in his mind. The memory of the fear on Ben’s face before he ran into he bathroom was haunting him, he closed his eyes and he could see his face so clearly he started to cry, in pain from the pain Ben was in. He never wanted Ben to look at him like that and it was breaking his heart thinking he was at home and scared of him. 

He got his phone out to check and see if Ben had tried to text or ring him but he hadn’t so he dejectedly laid down on the sofa, in the same position Ben was in back at home. They didn’t know it but they both fell asleep about the same time, falling into a restless slumber and each feeling as though their worlds were ending and missing having the other man to snuggle up to.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok last chapter. 
> 
> I can't guarantee I won't revisit this again, who knows. 
> 
> I did actually write an extra chapter but stupidly managed to delete it, so instead tried to rewrite some of it and added it to chapter 5 instead 😂.

Neither man slept well, both waking up multiple times in the night and struggling to get back to sleep until they ended up laying on the sofa staring into darkness. When the morning came they got up and stretched, the sofas they were sleeping on weren’t comfortable for anything other than a quick nap, certainly not for a whole night’s sleep. They hated waking up alone, missing having the other man wrapped around them. 

Callum picked up and looked at his phone, hoping he’d have a message from Ben even though he left his phone on vibrate and would have heard it had it arrived. But there was nothing and he felt himself getting upset again, thinking of Ben back at their flat upset and alone. He wondered if Ben was scared of him, if he really thought he could hit him, tearing up at the thought. He contemplated calling him but when he realised it was still only 6AM he thought better of it. Ben liked his sleep and he wouldn’t be awake this early through choice so he wanted to wait and not disturb him, after everything he’d been through the previous day he desperately needed some rest. 

He didn’t know that Ben was doing the same thing as him though, looking at his phone and willing it to ring, wanting Callum to call him and talk to him. He didn’t want to call him now, it was too early and he was scared he wouldn’t pick up, that he was too angry with the way he acted the previous night and that he’d blown everything. If he didn’t call him it would delay the inevitable of Callum leaving him for good. He’d already taken some of his things with him and he was terrified he wasn’t going to come home. 

Ben’s head was hurting, a combination of the throbbing of the bruise on his face and the alcohol he drank the night before. When he stood up he wobbled slightly and had a wave of nausea wash over him, he rushed into the bathroom and threw up whatever he had in his stomach. He hadn’t eaten anything last night before we went to the club, it was a huge mistake to start drinking whiskey on an empty stomach. He wiped his mouth and the throbbing in his face was getting worse with the exertion of heaving so he sat back against the bath with his head leaning back. He wanted to cry, his life was such a mess and he was beginning to feel as though it was all hopeless. 

He sat there for ten minutes or so and when he felt as though he wasn’t going to be sick anymore, he stood up and flushed the toilet before he went to the sink and splashed some water on his face, hoping it would rouse him slightly. He opened the cabinet and looked for one of the spare toothbrushes they kept there and he noticed one was missing, his heart sank as he realised Callum had taken it, now even more scared that his boyfriend was planning on being away for a long while. He brushed his teeth, trying to not look in the mirror as he did so, not wanting to see himself and the state he was in. 

He left the bathroom and went into the kitchen, noticing the dinner he had started last night still sitting in the pans, there was a skin on the sauce, the hob was a mess and he felt like picking up both pots and chucking them straight in the bin. Instead he ignored them and grabbed some biscuits out of the cupboard, wanting to eat something to settle his stomach so he could take some tablets for his head. He flicked the kettle on and threw some instant coffee in a cup, hoping the caffeine would help wake him up and feel a bit more human. Pouring the boiling water into the cup, the smell of the coffee filled the room and he started to feel a bit better. He filled a glass with water and picked both up.

On the way back to the bathroom to get some paracetamol, he placed his coffee on the table by the sofa, carrying on to the cabinet to grab some pills and taking them with the glass of water. When they’d gone down he went to the sofa and sat back down, the effort of walking around the flat had worn him out. The tv had turned itself off around 3AM and he hadn’t bothered to turn it back on, even though he was tossing and turning and pretty much still awake. He switched it back on now though, the silence in the flat was getting to him, usually he had Callum’s incessant chatter in the mornings and the quiet was too much to bear. 

The television came back to life on the same music channel he left it on last night and he laid back down, curling into a ball on the sofa, closing his eyes and dropping back off to sleep, hoping that when he woke up the world would be a little bit brighter for him. 

Callum couldn’t get back to sleep, he pottered around in his friend’s flat, as quietly as he could so he didn’t wake anyone else up. Eventually his work mate and his girlfriend got up for work though and found him pacing in the lounge. They didn’t know what had happened but they knew him well enough that it was something bad for him to be like this. They knew of his relationship with Ben, but had never met the man themselves, just that Callum was besotted with him and obviously something had gone down between them. They offered him breakfast which he gratefully accepted, he hadn’t eaten since lunch the previous day and it was only when he was offered food that he realised how hungry he really was. 

As they ate they thought about asking him what happened, but they didn’t want to interfere, if Callum wanted to talk about it he would. They did ask him if he was going to go into work that day and he shook his head in the negative, he said he needed to go and see Ben, he’d call in and apologise that he had an emergency he had to sort out. The state he was in his friend truly believe it was an emergency too, there was no way he would be able to concentrate on anything today. 

When they finished breakfast his friends went to get ready to go to work, as they left they told Callum he was welcome to stay as long as he wanted to, giving him a spare key and telling him to come and go as he pleased. He was relieved that they were being so kind to him, not pushing him to talk about what was wrong because he would feel so ashamed to tell them that he had to leave the flat because his boyfriend was scared of him. 

He was on the sofa watching tv when his phone went off, he rushed to answer it and was disappointed that it wasn’t Ben’s name on the display, instead it was Lola, he still pressed on the green phone though and accepted the call, hoping to find out if she knew how Ben was doing. 

“You going to tell me what last night was about then”

She started, not even a hello before she was questioning him about what was wrong with Ben. 

“Lo I can’t talk about this now”

“Why was Ben getting bladdered last night, what did you do?”

“I need to talk to Ben”

“Why? Where is he” she asked concerned

“He’s at home, I stayed at a friend’s place last night”

“Fuck, Callum what the hell is going on”

“Just leave it for now, I’m going home soon, don’t go round there I need to see him first”

He wanted to tell her to stay away and don’t even think about interfering, he knew Ben wouldn’t want her to see him like he is, he was fiercely private of coming across as vulnerable in front of people and he didn’t want Ben to feel as though everyone was going to know his business. Even now all he wanted to was to protect him from anymore hurt and harm. 

“OK Callum, but I swear, if you’ve done anything to hurt him I will hurt you, you understand”. 

Callum nodded even though she couldn’t see him, confirming verbally instead and ending the call. He looked at the clock and saw that lunchtime was fast approaching, he decided that now was the time to head back home and hope that Ben was willing to talk to him when he got there. He jumped in the shower and got ready, taking the key his friends had left him in case he couldn’t work it out with Ben and he had somewhere to go back to. He headed out of the flat and made his way back to Walford. 

He felt nervous as he got closer to the flat, not knowing if he should knock or just let himself in. In the end he decided that if he knocked Ben might not answer so he unlocked the door and walked in. The flat was quiet except for the TV playing, some shit modern song he didn’t recognise, the kitchen looked pretty much the same as it did the previous night when he left, the dinner untouched on the hob as he suspected it would be and he wondered if Ben had eaten anything yet today. 

He spotted his boyfriend asleep on the sofa, curled on his side with his hands under his face, looking so young and childlike except for a big ugly bruise surrounding his eye. His heart ached looking at him, feeling so guilty that he was responsible for it, knowing that if he hadn’t gone to speak to Kathy then this wouldn’t have happened. He was such an idiot. He was torn as to what to do, he didn’t want to wake Ben up but he thought it would be weird to just leave again or sit around and watch him sleep. 

The decision was taken out of his hands though when Ben sensed there was someone else in the room and he opened his eyes and looked at him. Callum’s breath caught, every time he saw he Ben he swore he fell even more in love with him, he wanted to race over and beg for forgiveness, pulling the other man to him and never letting him go, but he didn’t think that Ben would respond well to that course of action. Instead he stood where he was, waiting to see how Ben was going to react to him being in the flat before he did anything.

Ben blinked awake and saw Callum standing looking at him from the kitchen, he felt immediate relief wash over his body that he’d come home. He was so scared he wouldn’t come back and he’d blown things with him, he smiled in relief at his boyfriend and Callum smiled back at him. 

With the ice broken, Callum walked tentatively over to the sofa, going slowly and wanting to make sure that Ben was ok with him getting closer to him. The other man just kept smiling softly, his eyes lidded and still lazy from sleep, making it clear with his smile that he was happy that Callum was there. When he reached the sofa he crouched down to where Ben was, their faces almost at the same level.

“Hi” Callum started

“Hey”

“Are you ok?” 

“Are you?” 

They both nodded at each other to confirm they were as OK as they could be given the current circumstances. Ben’s nod was a little awkward as he was still laying down but it was pretty cute. 

“I’m sorry Ben, I’m so sorry, for your dad, for interfering, for him hurting you and I’m so so sorry that I scared you. You have to believe me I’d never have hurt you, I swear I….”

Ben pulled his hand out from under his head, reached it out and touched Callum’s face, putting it gently on his cheek and trying to stop him talking by letting his thumb rest over his lips. Callum was cut off mid sentence by Ben’s touch, closing his eyes at the contact and relieved that Ben wasn’t shouting at him and telling him to get out.

“I know you wouldn’t, I’m sorry I upset you Callum, please don’t leave me”

Callum opened his eyes at that and looked back at Ben, it hadn’t occurred to him that Ben might think he wasn’t coming back, that he was going to leave him. He didn’t know how Ben could possibly believe that Callum was the injured party in this mess, he needed to reassure him that he wasn’t going anywhere. He kissed the thumb that was still sitting on his lip and reached up to take Ben’s hand in his, pulling it down to rest in his crouched lap.

“Ben, you have nothing to apologise for. I love you, I would never leave I just wanted to give you some space because you were so upset, I was always coming home”

Callum sat down on the floor, getting a bit closer to the sofa and reaching out to stroke Ben’s hair, Ben didn’t flinch this time, he just closed his eyes and sighed at the touch, relieved that Callum was back and wasn’t going to walk out on him, happy to have his boyfriend back home where he belonged. 

“Ben we need to talk about what happened properly, but I’m not going anywhere as long as you want me here. I’m the one who fucked up not you, you don’t have to say sorry”

“I love you”

“I love you too”

Ben opened his eyes and sat up, Callum kept his hand in his hair and moved it along with him and once Ben was seated he got on his knees and leaned in to place a soft kiss on Ben’s forehead. He looked at Callum with such love in his eyes it made Callum’s heart burst. Ben asked the question they both wanted to know the answer to.

“Are we going to be ok?”

Callum nodded, as far as he was concerned they were going to be, he loved Ben, nothing was going to change that and Ben loved him. The other man smiled at him and leaned forwards to kiss Callum, just a gentle touch of lips but it was enough for both of them to know that they were both on the same page, they might have hit a rough patch but neither of them were willing to let outside forces ruin what they had. They would work through this and be stronger for it, they both believed that. 

  
Over the next few days they discussed what happened between Ben and Phil, Callum admitting that he’d gone and spoken to Kathy but he asked Ben to not be angry with her, all either of them wanted was to protect him and try to keep him out of trouble. Ben knew that ultimately he was right, it wasn’t intentional and he realised that neither of them would have done anything to hurt him. He wishes that they’d stayed out of it though even if one good thing had come out of this whole mess, at least he didn’t need to go through with his dad’s illegal deals. It still hurt that they’d gone behind his back but he was relieved that he wouldn’t have to risk getting arrested again.

Callum kept apologising when he found out that Phil knew about Michael, sad that Ben’s injuries were more a result of Phil’s anger at his perceived ‘weak’ son than the fact they were trying to stop him from dragging Ben into his dodgy business. It was unfathomable that Phil would be angry at Ben rather than the man who beat the shit out of him, brilliant parenting there he thought to himself. Ben told him to leave it, it was done now and there was no point in going over it anymore and Callum agreed, secretly seething at the way Phil treated his son and thinking that he was even worse than his own father. If Ben gave him the say so, he’d race round there and give him a taste of his own medicine but he knew his boyfriend didn’t want it, still with a sense of loyalty to his father. 

Ben booked an appointment with his counsellor, he hadn’t needed to see her as often lately but after what happened with the flashbacks he needed to talk to someone. She helped him to see that it wasn’t unusual to have a flashback of violent memories if he was subjected to violence again. Nobody would blame him for flinching in the situation he was in, he’d just been attacked by his dad and his body had a fight or flight response, “I wish it was a fight response” Ben said sadly, ashamed that he was always too scared to fight back. She just patted him on the hand and reassured him he was going to be ok, this was just a blip and he was doing really well with coping with his past up until this, she called it a bump in the road and he would get past it. With Callum by his side he thought she might be right, he’d been brilliant since that night and didn’t hate him for flinching from him, understanding why he did it.

Later Ben went to see his mum and she was devastated when she saw the state of his face, horrified that his dad could do that to him. She had never known the full extent of what happened between Phil and Ben when she was out of the picture and the guilt she felt now about abandoning her little boy to his alcoholic father added to the guilt she had about not noticing about the violence in his relationship. She explained that she was only trying to help and it was an accident that she’d told Phil anything about Michael, she was trying to get him to back off, telling him that Ben had already been through so much with his ex and before she knew it he’d questioned her and got all the information out of her before she realised what she was saying. 

She was disgusted with his attitude to his son, heartbroken on Ben’s behalf that he was right to not tell his father the truth given his reaction to the news. Ben told her that he forgave her but it would take a while to forget, it was the one thing he was desperate for his dad to not find out, knowing how big a disappointment he would be and it would take a while for the trust to be rebuilt between them. They ended the conversation with a hug and she promised she would do everything she could to prove to him that he could trust her again. He just smiled at her as he left, not sure if he ever could. 

“At least I don’t have to have anything to do with my dad anymore” he joked one night a week later while Callum was cooking dinner. The bruise on his face was faded now and just a light yellow mark remained in a sort of circle around his eye. Ben was pressed up against his back as Callum was turning the chicken over in the frying pan, his arms around the taller man’s waist and his lips kissing his shoulder lightly as they both watched the poultry turn from pink to a white colour. Callum put the spatula down and turned around in Ben’s arms until they were face to face.

“Ben, he’s not your dad, he’s just some bloke that got your mum pregnant. You need to believe that he doesn’t deserve your time or your love”

Ben nodded unconvincingly and Callum put his hands on either side of his face, holding his head in place and looking directly into Ben’s eyes, determined to make his point. 

“You have family who love you unconditionally, we will do anything for you, you don’t need that man in your life”

Ben smiled knowing his boyfriend was right and Callum leaned forwards to give him a kiss. Ben responded by tightening his grip around Callum’s waist and pulled him closer to him, a small moan escaping his throat as his boyfriend’s tongue was invading his mouth. Callum pulled back and said he needed to get back to the dinner and Ben grumbled at the loss of lips on his. Callum smiled and kissed him again quickly before turning back round to go back to cooking his famous chicken pasta for them. Ben continued to hug him from behind, his whole front pressed against the sturdy back of his lover and his face resting on Callum’s shoulder, watching his boyfriend make their dinner, happy they were ok and feeling like they were both where they were meant to be.


End file.
